Oklava modernising Turkish cuisine with a Gozney oven

Tuesday 9th May 2017

Selin Kiazim developed her love of cooking at an early age and went on to complete her Professional Chef’s Diploma in 2008 before working in many acclaimed restaurants. In 2015, she partnered up with Laura Christie to open Oklava in Shoreditch, in homage to her Turkish-Cypriot roots.

Oklava is a Turkish restaurant that takes traditional dishes and gives them a sleek, modern twist. In the centre of the restaurant is the open kitchen-bar with their charcoal grill and Gozney Oven on show. The dishes at Oklava are on the smaller side and intended to be shared, but they certainly don’t hold back on flavour.

You won’t find pizza on the menu so, it was crucial that Oklava chose an oven which is diverse and can offer the perfect cooking environment for Selin’s delicious dishes, including the popular Lahmacun. They opted for a gas version of one of Gozney’s former, Gio 120 models- the most comparable oven to this now being the Classic 1250.

Since the success of Oklava, Selin has just released her first cookbook titled ‘Oklava Recipes from a Turkish-Cypriot Kitchen’, giving customers the chance to make their favourites in the comfort of their own home, including Oklava’s popular medjool date butter with bharat spiced bread.

Selin can also be spotted on the BBC television programme, The Great British Menu, competing to serve her course to commemorate 140 years of Wimbledon. She wowed the judges in the first round with her big, bold flavours, clever use of props and modern twists on a traditional brief.